One year ago, on April 2, 2024, Bassirou Diomaye Faye was officially sworn in as the fifth President of the Republic of Senegal. It was the beginning of a new era for the West African country, which brought to power the youngest head of state in its history (Faye is now 45).
Faye was elected in the first round of the presidential election on March 24 last year with just over 54% of the total votes. In his victory speech, the left-wing Senegalese politician and pan-Africanist emphasized his priorities would be to tackle corruption and the high cost of living and above all to fight for national sovereignty.
“I swear to faithfully fulfill the office of President of the Republic of Senegal, to scrupulously observe and comply with the provisions of its Constitution and laws, to devote all my strength to defending constitutional institutions, the integrity of the territory, national independence and, finally, to spare no effort to achieve African unity,” Faye declared in his oath of office.
To understand the impact of Diomaye Faye’s sovereigntist government decisions so far, BdF spoke to representatives of the West African country’s grassroots movement.
For these leaders, Faye’s victory represents the Senegalese people’s desire for an end to French political, military and economic dominance over Senegal, whose beginning dates back to its independence, in 1960.
“We, the Senegalese people, wanted a move. We wanted to change governance, to finally be on the road to national sovereignty. It’s a victory against neocolonial structures,” points out Khady N’Diaye, a member of the West African Peoples’ Organization (Wapo).
Transition of government
Born to a farming family in Ndiaganiao, a village 150km from the capital Dakar, Faye came to power under the tutelage of political leader Ousmane Sonko, who became his prime minister. They promised a new form of governance and social justice under the slogan “jub, jubbal, jubbanti”. The three words in Senegal’s most widely spoken language, Wolof, can be translated as righteousness, transparency and reform.
Leaders of the political party Patriots of Senegal for Work, Ethics and Fraternity (Pastef), the two were imprisoned and released only 10 days before the election, after being granted amnesty by the government of Macky Sall, who ruled the country between 2012 and 2024.
From May 2023 on, people have been taking to the streets against the economic measures of the center-right government aligned with France. Pastef was even dissolved by former president Sall on the grounds of “promoting violent acts in the country.”
In March this year, a study published by the CartograFreeSenegal collective counted a total of 65 victims of the massacre committed by police forces under Sall government’s. They were targeting people who took to the streets to protest against the former administration’s measures between March 2021 and February 2024. According to the survey, 51 of all victims were shot dead, most of them workers and students.
“There’s also the fact that we’re in the middle of a debate in the National Assembly about the country’s budget, to qualify the issue of the amnesty law that the former government approved to protect itself when it left power, to guarantee justice for those who suffered all kinds of violent crimes, torture in addition to illegal, repressive and arbitrary measures taken by the previous government,” explains journalist Diagne Fode Roland, from the Ferland newspaper.
Faye and Sonko’s campaign was aimed at implementing left-wing pan-Africanism. One of Faye’s promises to restore the country’s national sovereignty was to free Senegal from the French-linked CFA franc monetary system and create its own currency.
“Pastef really had the strength and courage to stand up to a neoliberal government that started in the 1960s. It came up with a project looking from now until 2050, a project that really wants national sovereignty, food sovereignty. In other words, [a proposal] to produce food and expand consumption,” adds N’Diaye.
The figures inherited from Macky Sall’s previous regime show a worrying economic scenario which, according to experts, makes it difficult for Faye’s Senegal to envision economic growth in the short term.
An audit of public finances commissioned by the new government revealed that the 2023 budget deficit was over 10% and the public debt stood at 99.67% of national GDP, or more than US$ 30,2 million.
According to recent reports shared throughout the country, Sall left a US$ 7 billion hole in the country’s finances. The debt has put Senegal in a difficult position vis-à-vis the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which has threatened to suspend its international financial aid to the African country.
“The former government had in its hands US$ 7 billion hidden away, and that has just made the news in our country, showing how catastrophic the financial situation was here,” says Roland, who is also linked to the Wapo.
Senegal’s Agenda 2050
The ambitious Senegal Agenda 2050, implemented by Faye in October 2024, has been a way of tackling the bleak scenario left by the former administration. With the measures, he is trying to achieve 6.5% annual growth and triple GDP per capita by 2050.
Since coming to power, Faye has launched projects such as the Sangomar oil field and the Grand Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) gas project, shared with Mauritania. The country has also started refining its own oil, starting with 90,000 tons. The aim is to reduce dependence on imports.
In his first weeks as president, Faye audited sectors such as oil, gas and mining, as well as the ministries’ public accounts, stating his intent to promote transparency and review contracts considered illegal with foreign companies, as Roland positively assesses.
“There are 480 of them that the Minister of Mines has highlighted as being completely illegal contracts, which will be reviewed,” the journalist points out.
Another sovereignty focused presidential measure on was the end of the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement signed with the European Union. The non-renewal of the agreement was greeted with great satisfaction by Senegalese fishermen, who faced competition from foreign vessels.
“I can say that France practically runs Senegal because it runs the economic, energetic and water businesses. A country can’t develop in such a situation. That’s why I say we’re at a breaking point,” says Khady N’Diaye.
Getting closer to the struggles of the Sahel
The withdrawal of French troops from Senegal, ordered by Faye at the end of 2024, is another decision that brings the president closer to the masses who elected him. The withdrawal of foreign troops began after France handed over two military bases to Senegal in mid-March.
“Senegal is an independent country. It is a sovereign country. And sovereignty makes no room for the presence of these military bases in a sovereign country,” Faye addressed the nation in a speech broadcast on the country’s major media outlets.
According to Diagne Fode Roland, the measure follows the pan-Africanist and anti-imperialist movements set up in recent years in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, neighboring nations that are part of the Alliance of Sahel States (ASS).
“First Mali, then Burkina Faso and Niger decided to turn the page on the neocolonial system and look to the sovereigntist perspective. In Senegal, we are following our own path, because at the moment we are not directly threatened. And we hope it stays that way,” Roland says.
“Today, with the new experience of the ASS, it has been proven that imperialism is not invincible. We can fight it head on and even defeat it very clearly,” the journalist concludes.
